Max Dowman has become the youngest player to start for Arsenal after being named in their starting XI for the Carabao Cup tie against Brighton.
Dowman, who is 15 years and 302 days old, beats the previous record set by Jack Porter, who started in the Carabao Cup against Bolton Wanderers in September 2024 aged 16 years 72 days.
Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager, knows he has an exceptional talent at his disposal and has shown he believes Dowman, who is yet to finish secondary school, can compete at the highest level.
Speaking to Sky Sports before the game, Arteta said of starting Dowman: “I think he was expecting it, he’s been around us for a few months. We believe in the context, surrounded by senior players, and hope he can cope with that in the way he has done in the last few months.”
It was yet another milestone in Dowman’s rapid rise, having already become the second-youngest player in history to play in the Premier League.
Should Dowman play in the Champions League in the next three matchdays, he would become the youngest player to feature in the competition. He would beat the previous record set by Youssoufa Moukoko, who came on for Borussia Dortmund in December 2020 at the age of 16 years and 18 days.
The Athletic explains why Dowman is one of the most exciting young players in Europe…
Who is Max Dowman?
If becoming the youngest player to start for Arsenal is not enough of an indicator, then the simplest way to describe Dowman is to say he is one of the most talented teenagers in European football.
His 16th birthday is not until the end of December, but Dowman, who typically plays on the right wing, is already showing he is the type of player who puts supporters on the edge of their seats, excited about what he might do next.
He joined Arsenal’s academy in 2015. His quality has been well-known within the club for years, and supporters are seeing why there has been so much buzz.
Dowman began training with Arteta and the first team last season before making his unofficial first-team debut against Milan in a friendly this July.
Versatile with a multifaceted skill set, he has been deployed as a right-winger, central midfielder and in the No 10 role throughout his time in the club’s academy.
He made his first appearance at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium for the under-18s against Manchester United in the FA Youth Cup, two months after turning 15, and often found himself being triple-marked. That is how good he is for his age.
When did he get his Arsenal breakthrough?
Arteta spoke about Dowman several times last season and made it clear he would be taking the teenager on the club’s pre-season tour to Singapore and Hong Kong.
Already playing three years above his age at the club’s Hale End academy, he soon found himself being double-marked by Tottenham Hotspur’s Djed Spence and Son Heung-min (now at Los Angeles FC) during one of the friendly matches in Asia.
Dowman was arguably Arsenal’s best player on tour and it came as little surprise when Arteta included him in the squad for their 5-0 win against Leeds United in the Premier League on August 23.
He came off the bench against Leeds and stole the show, winning a penalty and showing his confidence.
At 15 years 235 days, he became the second-youngest player in Premier League history to make their debut after Ethan Nwaneri, his Arsenal team-mate who made his top-flight bow at 15 years and 181 days against Brentford in September 2022.
Following his performances for Arsenal, Dowman was selected to play for England U19 in September. He has now made five appearances for the under-19s, three of them starts, and scored in their most recent match, a 7-0 win against Wales.
What has Arteta said about him?
After Arsenal’s 3-2 friendly defeat against Villarreal on August 6, Arteta praised Dowman’s “efficiency that he shows in every attack and action”, describing it as “incredible”.
“It’s been so fast,” Arteta said of Dowman’s development. “Even last year, when he was training with us, he was doing this kind of thing in training and now he’s doing it in the game consistently.
“They (his team-mates) have the ball and they give it to him, so that tells you how much they trust him and the relationship he’s building within the team.”
Mikel Arteta and Max Dowman, right, pictured during Arsenal training (Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Following his excellent cameo against Leeds, Arteta told Sky Sports: “It is great to change the energy in the stadium by bringing him in and he had an impact. He won a penalty on his debut at the Emirates. That’s incredible.
“It’s credit, first of all, to his family; the way these kids have been raised and the environment created. They are not overwhelmed by the environment and context.”
What about at international level?
As well as playing above his age group in Arsenal’s academy, and for the first team, Dowman has also been playing higher up in the England setup.
Back in May, before representing Arsenal’s first team, Dowman was playing for England at the Under-17s European Championship and his dribbling ability stood out as he made several mazy runs.
Dowman has been hard to handle at international youth level (Manuel Queimadelos/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images)
When he played for England’s under-19s against their Spanish counterparts in San Pedro del Pinatar in September, our correspondent Guillermo Rai was at the game and noted that Dowman was “fouled at least nine times during the game, with anger at the treatment he received spilling over into a confrontation between players from both sides after the final whistle”.
How good can he be?
He still cannot change in the same dressing room as the first-team squad due to his young age but Dowman’s ceiling looks to be incredibly high.
To have played in the Premier League and started for the club before even turning 16 and finishing secondary school is quite the achievement, and a testament to the belief Arteta has in his qualities.
The Arsenal manager, however, will want to protect him and ensure that his development continues responsibly.
Boasting a strength in depth that few clubs can match, Arteta can continue easing in Dowman slowly, rather than rushing his progress — but it seems inevitable that at some point over the next couple of years, the teenager will cement his name in Arsenal’s starting XI.
